LOWriter; Putting lists into their own columns?

English
#1

Greetings

I dont know if I am saying this correctly or not?

  1. I have many separate lists in my document that I wish to put into columns to save space but also make easier to read.
  2. I looked into tables and this does not seem easy
  3. I looked into this:

Using Sections for Columns

Sections are ideal for applying columns to a specific portion of text (like a list) without affecting the whole page or document.

  1. Select the text you want to format (or place your cursor at the start).
  2. Go to Insert > Section.
  3. In the Insert Section dialog, switch to the Columns tab.
  4. Set the number of columns, widths, spacing, and any separator line options.
  5. Optionally, check Evenly distribute contents to all columns to balance the text flow.
  6. Click Insert. This wraps your selected text in a section with the column layout.
  7. To edit later: Right-click inside the section, choose Edit Section, and adjust the Columns tab.

Sections encapsulate the formatting, making it easier to manage and reuse without applying it directly to the text itself.

If your document has varying layouts, combine these: Use a page style for the overall document and sections for exceptions. Always preview changes in the dialog’s preview pane for accuracy.

  1. Is this the proper way to do it to avoid DF direct formatting problems?
  2. Is this method ideal to use for “chapter summaries” at the begining of each chapter also that I have in a table now?
  3. According to the above *snippet document the answer to 4 above is YES. Is this true or not ?

Thanks
LOWriterTest1.odt (56.6 KB)

*update attached sample document

SYstem details:
Version: 24.2.7.2 (X86_64) / LibreOffice Community
Build ID: 420(Build:2)
CPU threads: 12; OS: Linux 6.8; UI render: default; VCL: gtk3
Locale: en-US (en_US.UTF-8); UI: en-US
Ubuntu package version: 4:24.2.7-0ubuntu0.24.04.4
Calc: threaded

#2

:thinking:
any .odt sample file you can upload here ?

Ask/Guide - How to use the Ask site - The Document Foundation Wiki #How_to_add_to_my_question

#3

How do you format your lists? Format>Bullets & Numbering or toolbar buttons are DF. Only list style application is not DF.


Globally speaking, your question asks about two independent aspects: lists and layout. Layout-wise, a section is the “logical” choice because lists are not “tabular by nature”; they are read sequentially. Therefore, a multi-column section handles them accordingly, with automatic spill-over to next column (which does not occur in a table).

For a better answer/suggestion, provide an example document of what you want to achieve. Also, mention OS name, exact LO version and save format.

#4

I format my lists with STYLING not direct formatting

#5

Cross posted on Reddit.

If you cross post, as a courtesy please let us know that you have done so, otherwise it leads to several discussions and a waste of time because several identical answers may be posted by different users.

#6

Sorry had no idea – not used to this “Cross posting” concept

Can someone answer my question?

  1. Does using "section > columns " violate “don’t use DF” in libreofficeWriter?
#7

Sections are no DF per se. They are a design decision to change “temporarily” the general layout of a page. But there is no way to automate this since there is no “section style”.

#8

ok, so I am good using the section style with columns?

#9

Yes. there is no other way to switch from 1-column to 3-column then back in a page.

#10

It wasn’t until I read this question that I really began to understand List styles, Writer: Can the List styles be linked?

I have modified your sample to show a Bullet list style implemented by a paragraph style. I also created an outline list to explain how. To switch from the list back to Body Text, just press enter to create a new paragraph and press Ctrl+0 to apply Body Text, there is no numbering carry-over.

The only thing is that if you have more than one numbered list, you have to manually restart numbering at the beginning of each new list, see tdf#51373

LOWriterTest1_128211EA.odt (38.4 KB)

#11

At time of this question, I had not yet understood the interactions/overrides between paragraph and list styles. My question missed the point and unfortunately @oweng didn’t point out my mistake.

A list style takes ownership of paragraph indents (yes, even the right indent though there is no UI to change it). So, attempting to change indents in the paragraph style creates a mess out of which there is no escape but to start anew.

Thus, the answer to my question is: yes, paragraph styles involving a list style can be linked and attributes will cascade as expected provided you don’t touch those which are overridden in the list style.

That was a very specific question and I’m afraid it could be a bit misleading for the present question which much simpler.

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